


helpless

by starxreactor



Series: Hamilprompts [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Dancing, Fluff, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Inspired by Hamilton, Light Angst, Love at First Sight, M/M, Meet-Cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-10
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-10-25 20:27:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17732099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starxreactor/pseuds/starxreactor
Summary: It's love at first sight for the two of them.Tony has never felt like this before – so helpless.





	helpless

**Author's Note:**

  * For [duckmoles](https://archiveofourown.org/users/duckmoles/gifts).



> "helpless but it’s tony as eliza" - duckmoles
> 
> Thanks to duck for the prompt, and pjcole and riseupwiseupeyesup for cheer reading this!
> 
> this was supposed to be like 1k what the fuck

The first time Tony saw those blue eyes, he was at a charity auction set up by his mother, and his heart immediately started pounding. His knees went weak and he had to grab onto Pepper’s arm for help.

She sent him a confused glance, before her gaze caught up with Tony’s. She narrowed her eyes. “No.”

“Pepper, it’s not–” Tony searched for an explanation. He himself wasn’t sure what had happened. He just saw that man and his chest went tight, body weak. It wasn’t arousal, there was a stirring in his groin, sure, but it was easily controllable – not like the tightness in his chest. “It’s not like that.”

She studied his face, and seemingly saw something that told her he was being honest, because her eyes softened, slightly. “Okay. I’ll choose to believe you. Let me handle this.”  
  
Without another word, she detached herself from his grip. Tony watched helplessly as she approached the – _gorgeous_ – blue-eyed man, saying something him. By the way the man’s eyes lit up, he recognized Pepper, and had some sort of attachment to her.

Well, Tony may be a self-recognized slut but there was no way he was going to get between that – not unless they wanted to, of course.

Tony sipped his champagne, pretending he was looking away at something else when Pepper pointed the man’s attention in his direction. The tightness in his chest wasn’t going away, and his face felt hot. Flushed.

He was engrossed in watching a couple dance on the dancefloor, wondering if he could find himself a partner, when there was a tap on his shoulder. He startled, jerking his flute of champagne.

“Shit!” Pepper hissed, grabbing the flute before he spilled it all over himself. “Sorry, Tony, I thought you knew I was there.”

“It’s fine,” Tony said, a second later losing all breath as he looked up through his eyelashes at the man he had been admiring from afar. This close up, he couldn’t seem to breathe, drowning in his eyes like one would do in an ocean. He’d never felt so weak and helpless. “I...”

“This is Steve Rogers,” Pepper offered cheerfully. “He’s one of the artists selling his art for the charity auction.”

Steve smiled, one side of his mouth lifting higher than the other, highlighting his sharp cheekbones that Tony wanted to run his fingers over. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Stark.”

“Call me Tony,” he breathed, still lost in his eyes. Those blue – no, _azure_ eyes. Tony had never seen such a shade of blue before. He shook his head, trying to break himself out of the trance. What was wrong with him? Usually when he was attracted to someone, he’d be getting his way into their pants right now. “Thank you for helping with this charity. That’s...really noble of you. ”

Steve was still smiling with that odd quirk. Tony had never seen such pink, plush lips. “Well, I wanted to help in any way I can.”

Pepper kissed Tony on the cheek. “I’ll leave you to it.”

Tony turned to her with wide eyes. “Pepper, no–”  
  
She placed a delicate finger on his lips. “Shh. You’ll be fine.”

Tony watched as she left, wanting to protest but unwilling to argue with someone who worked for his mom. He jumped when Steve spoke, turning back to him. “She’s nice, your girlfriend. She was the one who helped me get into this auction in the first place.”

“Oh, she’s – not – she’s not my girlfriend. She’s my…she’s my mom’s PA.”

Steve nodded slowly. “Ah. You don’t have one of your own?”

“I don’t need one,” Tony said, shrugging. “I don’t do much in the company yet.” He was avoiding Steve’s eyes, terrified of drowning again.

“How old are you, again?” Steve asked.

“Twenty-one.”

“Mm, so you should be ready to take over the company soon.”

“I don’t think that’ll happen until Dad dies,” Tony mumbled. “I’m fine with that. I don’t want to spend my time making weapons anyway.”

“Yeah,” Steve agreed lightly. “I’m not a huge fan of weapons either. I used to be in the army, and–“ He cut himself off for a second. Tony considered lifting his head to get a look at his expression, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. “Let’s not talk about that. But...if it took fighting a war to meet you, it was all worth it.”  
Tony’s eyes grew to the size of saucers as he stared down at his shiny, black shoes. His face was back to feeling as though it were on fire, and there was that tight, swooping sensation in his chest again. He got the strange urge to swoon. “Uh…”  
  
“Sorry,” Steve said. “Too forward?”

“No, you’re – you’re fine.” There was a smudge on one of his shoes. Mom and Jarvis wouldn’t like that.

“Would you...like to dance, then?”

Hadn’t Tony just been thinking of that? Could it really hurt? “Okay,” he said, finally meeting Steve’s eyes. The moment they connected, Tony lost his breath again. There was something – enthralling, magical, ethereal – about that gaze. Like he was simultaneously drowning and lighter than air.

Steve held out his arm, which was – that – that was good. Tony was feeling so shaky that he needed something solid to stabilize him.

Gently, they headed to the dancefloor. Tony could see his mom and dad waltzing, and suddenly he felt even more lightheaded. What would his dad think? He could already hear the clicks of the paparazzi’s cameras.

Why did he care?

He’d been caught in worse situations. Much, _much_ worse situations.

There was another factor to it, one only his subconscious had picked up on so far.

Tony stared up at Steve as they got into position, Steve’s hands at his waist and Tony’s around his neck.

“I probably should have told you this before, but I can’t dance,” Steve whispered to him.

Tony tried his hardest to fight back his laugh. “I’ll teach you.”

“I’ll step on your feet.”

“It’s part of the learning process.”

Steve smiled at that, one corner lifting up higher than the other. Tony already loved that about him, the way it made his legs jelly and his stomach swoop, his chest tight, and he just wanted to  – _oh_.

This was – slowly, Tony guided Steve into the motions. “Okay, so you step back like this, and then forward – no, not like that.” Steve was already looking a little frazzled, and Tony pulled his arms away. “Here, I’ll lead instead.” This time Tony’s hands were placed at Steve’s narrow waist, while his huge biceps were right next to Tony’s face.

This was not a good idea, but he was already too far in to back out now.

Like this, it was easier to teach Steve, since he only had to follow Tony’s movements. Slowly, they waltzed back and forth across the dancefloor. Tony stared up at Steve, watching his face as it concentrated on getting the steps right. His brow was furrowed and the tip of his tongue was poking out of his mouth. It was adorable, and Tony wanted to kiss him right then and there.

He was helpless.

* * *

A week had passed since then, and Tony was constantly exchanging texts with Steve. His mom and Jarvis were elated at him making a new friend that wasn’t one of his parents’ employees, and well, Dad, Tony never really knew what was going on through his head. He probably hadn’t noticed anything.

But Tony couldn’t care less, because he was absolutely, hopelessly in love with Steve. Yes, he said it.

Before Steve, he couldn’t have imagined ever feeling this way, but he had no idea what else to call it. He’d never been in love before, not like this. He’d felt lust, sure, and been infatuated a few unfortunate times in his past, but he’d never fallen so helplessly for someone, especially someone he had just met.

Still, there was no denying the pounding of his heart, the blood rushing to his face, the weakness in his limbs, whenever he was talking to Steve. He’d said it before, but when he was with him, he just felt – _helpless_ , like one of those stereotypical, sexist portrayals of a damsel in distress in some superhero movie.

He just wasn’t sure what to call their relationship. After their flirtatious meeting, they hadn’t really discussed anything except to exchange phone numbers. Sure, they had kept up the flirting, which...Tony was pretty sure wasn’t exactly what friends did? But they also hadn’t talked about dating, or anything.

His thoughts were cut off by a ping from his phone, and Tony snatched it up immediately.

 

_Steve_

_Hey, if you’re not too busy, want to meet up? I know this great coffee shop._

 

Was this man purposely trying to get into his heart? With trembling fingers, Tony painstakingly typed out his response.

 

_You_

_Yes ofc! I always have time for you._

 

Was this it? Was Steve going to ask Tony out? He let out a giggle, sitting down on his bed and waiting for what Steve would say. He was expected for lunch, but he was sure his mom would understand.

 

_Steve_

_Great! :)_

_I’ll pick you up. I think I know your address?_

_That sounded really creepy, didn’t it_

 

_You_

_Not really a lot of people know where we live lol_

 

_Steve_

_...that’s not good, Tony_

 

Tony shook his head, but he texted the address anyway. Just in case. He laid out on the bed, smiling at his phone screen like an idiot. Then it hit him. Clothes. He should probably wear something nicer than his MIT sweatshirt and sweatpants. He leapt up, rummaging through his closet for a dress shirt that wasn’t wrinkled. Eventually, he pulled out a wine red shirt, and he paired that with black pants that hugged his curves.

Quickly, he checked the mirror in case his hair was messy. It seemed fine, but Tony ran a little bit of gel through it anyway, just to be sure.

Then he headed out of his room, bounding down the staircase into their kitchen. People found it kind of weird that Tony still lived with his parents at twenty-one, and to be honest he did, too. There wasn’t any real reason he was still at home. He was just so busy getting ready to take over the company he didn’t have time to get a job and get his own place. Sure, he could have his parents pay for it, but Tony wanted to do things on his own. If he had his own apartment, he was going to pay for it, not his parents.

He was planning on moving out soon, though. It was about time, and Tony wanted to be more independent. He was sick of being treated like a child.

Only Jarvis was there right now, getting lunch ready. Seemed to be an assortment of tea sandwiches along with pasta salad.

Tony leaned his elbows on the counter. “Looks good, J!”

“Thank you, Master Tony,” Jarvis said primly as he cut a sandwich into fours. He glanced up at Tony, smiling warmly. “You seem excited about something. And you’re all dressed up.”  
  
Tony smiled at the thought that Jarvis knew him so well. “Steve asked me out!”

Jarvis blinked at him. “On a date?”

“Well, no…” Tony admitted. “He just asked me if I wanted to go with him to some coffee shop.”  
  
“Good.” At Tony’s bewildered look, he explained, “I want to talk to him before any romance goes on. I’m happy for you, of course, but that doesn’t mean I can’t still look out for you as well.”  
  
Tony hummed, straightening up. He’d gotten this conversation every time he’d started dating someone new, and each time Jarvis had been incensed at how it ended. He kind of wondered how Jarvis still held out hope that things would go well.

Steve was different, though. He wouldn’t do anything to hurt Tony. He knew that much. Any war veteran who would spend their hard-earned time and money creating paintings that could be donated to a charity for kids with cancer wouldn’t willingly hurt another soul.

His phone pinged and he pulled it out. It was Steve, telling him he was outside the gate. “Oh, it’s Steve! Sorry, can’t talk right now. And tell Mom I’m sorry, but I had to go out with Steve.”

“Will do,” Jarvis said sedately as he plopped on some chicken salad onto a slice of bread.

“Bye, J!” Tony shouted as he ran off.

“Goodbye, Master Tony.”

Tony very nearly ran all the way to the gate, before he realized that might seem too eager and he slowed down his pace. “Hey, Steve,” he said casually as he approached the motorcycle, ignoring the pounding in his chest. He hadn’t expected a motorcycle. A Ford, maybe? Steve seemed like a Ford kind of guy. “Nice ride.”

Steve smiled at him. “Thanks. She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”  
  
Tony could definitely agree with that. He gingerly sat down behind Steve, putting on the helmet when it was handed to him. His palms felt sweaty. He’d been on motorcycles before, so that wasn’t bothering him. It had to be the proximity to Steve. Dancing, as intimate as it was, still hadn’t had them pressed against each other in one smooth line. It was different on the bike, though, because Tony had to reach and grab onto Steve’s waist as they started driving.

He leaned his head closer. Through the helmet, he couldn’t feel anything, but he really wanted to lean it against Steve’s shoulder. That would probably bother him, though.

Still, the rush of the wind against him, the sounds of cars honking and people talking as they passed by, it was all exhilarating. It was far too soon when they stopped, Steve somehow managing to find parking in New York City. “Here we are,” he announced as he got off, pulling off his helmet.

Tony’s breath caught in his throat. Steve’s golden hair was all mussed from the helmet, a lock of it falling across his forehead like a paint stroke. Tony wanted to brush his fingers through it, feel the softness on his hand. 

“You alright?”

Tony nodded, staring at Steve with wide eyes. There was no way Steve wasn’t aware of what he was doing to Tony.

Steve smiled that perfect smile at Tony, eyes crinkling in the corners. “Okay, good!” He offered his arm, and Tony blinked at for a second before realizing what Steve wanted. He looped his arm around, grabbing onto Steve’s hand tightly.

That was something people did when dating, right? Handholding?

Steve led him into the coffee shop and to a small table. They sat down, and Steve let out a sigh. “You want to order anything?”  
  
“Don’t you?”  
  
Steve shook his head. “No, I mostly just want to...talk.” He looked slightly pale, as if he was worried about something. Tony had no idea how to make that better, but he yearned to do it.  
  
He had been planning on getting a coffee, but if Steve wanted to say something he was willing to wait. “Okay, say what you want and then I can get something.”  
  
“No, I don’t want to keep you waiting–”  
  
Tony moved his hand so it was covering Steve’s own. “Steve. Say it.” Steve took a deep breath, and let it out, closing his eyes. “Okay.” He opened his eyes, staring at Tony, who shivered. He could get lost in those eyes all day. “So, I just wanted to – I wanted to get a sense for our relationship.”  
  
Tony froze. Was this the moment Steve officially asked him out?

“We flirted a bit in our first meeting, and afterwards, but we never...had some official thing going on. The thing is, Tony, I like you a lot. I liked you the second I met you, but I realize I might have...come off a bit strongly in our first meeting, so I decided to dial things back. But it’s been a week, and I can’t hold myself back anymore. So I guess this is me asking, do you want to go out, Tony? Officially?”

“Yes,” Tony said before Steve had even finished speaking.

Steve looked slightly bewildered at that. “I expected a bit more thought from you. Not that I’m not happy about that, but you said it before I was even done.”

Tony leaned closer. “I’m in love with you,” he said. “Of course I want to date you. I’ve never felt like this with anyone else.”

Steve’s eyes softened, and he smiled. “I love you, too. I just thought that was a bit weird to say since we’ve only known each other for a week. Can I...kiss you?”

“Yes!” Tony leaned even closer over the table, but no, that was awkward. He pulled out his wallet, dropping several bills on the table. “Let’s go outside.”  
  
“I thought you wanted to order something.”  
  
Tony stood up, pushing in his chair. “I want you even more.”

Steve’s eyes brightened at that, and he followed Tony’s example. “Alright, let’s go.” They giggled as they left the shop – Tony was pretty sure everyone was staring at them, but he couldn’t bring himself to care, because he was finally dating Steve!

Outside, by the motorcycle, Tony turned to stare up at Steve. He was quite a bit taller than Tony. But he liked that. Steve made him feel safe. After a week of talking to the guy, Tony was pretty sure he was the kind of person to save kittens stuck in trees and help old ladies across the street. Someone selfless and giving. Why he chose Tony was beyond him.

But Tony wasn’t going to give Steve up that easily.

Steve slowly leant his head down, Tony meeting the gap halfway. Tony hated being so cliche, but the moment their lips touched, he felt a tingle go down his spine. Slowly, Tony moved so that his chest was plastered against Steve’s. He wanted to touch him as much as possible. Not even sexually, though that was also a thing, just – in general.

Their kiss turned into two, and then three, and then several more. By the time they finally separated Steve’s plush lips were cherry-red, and Tony was certain his own were as well.

They grinned at each other like idiots. “That was – nice,” Tony said finally.

“Yeah,” Steve agreed, picking up his helmet. “It was. We should – head back, maybe.”

Tony checked the time on his phone. It had been a lot longer than he had thought. “Yeah, we should.”

The way back was the same, but this time Tony felt more welcome to hold onto Steve and lean his head against Steve’s shoulder, the way he had wanted to do when they were driving to the cafe.

Steve stopped in front of the gate. As they got off, Steve turned to face Tony. “I know this wasn’t a proper date, but it was still nice.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, at a lack for any words. He _had_ enjoyed it, though.  
  
“I’ll text you, okay? I’ll figure out a better date and tell you about it.”  
  
“Okay,” Tony said, leaning up onto his toes to press a kiss to Steve’s mouth. “Do that. You should come over for dinner one day, though. Introduce you to the family properly.”

Steve smiled, hugging Tony. “Sounds fun.”

* * *

 

Two weeks since they had first met, Steve was over for dinner. Tony had been excited initially, but it was the realization that he would meet his dad that killed any enthusiasm he might have had.

His dad was...not a great person. He and Tony clashed over everything, and Tony was at the point where he could admit that his dad had fucked him up a lot as a kid. Forcing alcohol on him, hitting him a few times, ignoring him, yelling at him. He’d stopped all that once Tony had gone to MIT, but it still colored every interaction Tony had with him. Dad was part of the reason Tony was so desperate to move out.

And now Tony had just decided to introduce Steve to dear old Dad. There was no way this would end well. He’d drunk an entire bottle of wine already, and he was tipsy.

Tony watched as Dad moved across the room to stand in front of Steve.

Steve smiled and reached out his hand, which Dad hesitantly took. “Hello, Mr. Stark. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Nothing good, probably,” Dad said, frowning at Tony. “Your ‘boyfriend’ here like to turn me into some sort of monster.”  
  
“Howard,” Mom hissed warningly.

Tony knew it.

The smile on Steve’s face suddenly looked a lot more false. Tony hadn’t opened up much about his parents, it was too early for that, but he had admitted the tension between the two of them.

“No, nothing like that.” Steve forced a laugh. “I just wanted to meet you since I’m going to be dating your son.”

Howard shrugged. “I have no problem with it. I’m just wondering what you think about dating sloppy seconds.”

“Howard!” Mom cried.

Tony was used to this kind of talk, so he just let it glance off of him, but apparently he should have warned Steve, because his body had gone all stiff. The fake smile was completely gone, replaced with blazing blue fury.

“What did you just say?” His voice was low, threatening, but Dad apparently didn’t pick up on it.

This was going wrong, a lot faster than Tony had thought it would. He had been under the impression they would at least get to the dinner.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with him but he just can’t seem to keep it in his pants.” At Steve’s silence, he smirked. “What, he didn’t tell you? Sorry, but he’s a slut.”

One second, Dad was standing there, the next, he was sprawled on the ground, blood spurting from his nose. Mom was screaming, and Jarvis had rushed to hold Steve back.

Oh no. Oh, no, no, no, no. Tears pricked at his eyes. Steve was going to dump him now, or if not, Dad wouldn’t let Tony ever see Steve again. That wouldn’t stop Tony, but everything would be so much _harder_.

“Come on!” Steve grabbed Tony’s arm and pulled him along. He saw Jarvis standing there, helping Dad up. When he caught Tony’s eye, he just nodded.

Tony went with Steve.

Once they were stood outside the gate, just as they were a week ago, Tony groaned, rubbing at his eyes to get rid of the tears. “Why did you do that?”

“Tony, did you hear the way he was talking about you? It was appalling.” Steve looked upset, like a kicked puppy. “I knew you had a bad relationship, but I didn’t realize it was _that_ bad.”

Tony shrugged. “I’m used to it, Steve, and he’s done worse.”  
  
There was silence. “Tony, please answer me honestly. Did he...ever hit you?”

“A few times, but I was a kid then. I’m an adult now.”

Steve reared back, looking disgusted. His face was sheet-white. “I should have done a lot worse than break his nose, then.”  
  
“Please, no! He could ruin you!”

Steve snorted, taking Tony into his arms. “How? I don’t have a lot of money, or really even that big of a place. And I can’t say I’ve ever had a family, either. My mom died when I was young and my dad died before I was born. The only person I had to myself was Bucky, and he–” Steve shook his head. “Never mind that. My point is, I’ve already hit rock bottom. You were what brought me out of it. There’s nothing else your dad can do to hurt me – except to hurt _you_.”

Tony stared up at Steve.  
  
“And I swear, I’m not going after you for my money,” he continued. “I didn’t even realize who you were when we first started talking. Just – I don’t want you in that environment. Move in with me, or if you want, we’ll get some other place. We can figure it out.”

Tony wanted to, so, so much. But… “That’s a little soon, isn’t it?”

“It is, but what about our relationship isn’t? I fell in love with you five seconds after seeing you.” Steve tilted his head, so that his eyes were staring straight into Tony’s soul. Even after days of getting lost in those eyes, Tony still couldn’t help but feel breathless. “I already know I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I swear, Tony, you’ll never have to feel so helpless, ever again.”  
  
Tony pressed his forehead to Steve’s shoulder, kissing his collarbone. He breathed out. “Okay,” he whispered. “We can do this. We’ll move in together.”

“Maybe get married, some day.”

He burrowed even further into Steve’s arms, soaking up the love. “You want that?”

“Of course. You’re the only one who’s ever made me feel this way.”

That caught Tony’s attention. He glanced up at Steve’s face, feeling his knees get weak at all the love reflected in his eyes. “Like what?”

“So helpless."

* * *

 

Things were going well since then.

They had moved into a small, cramped apartment, but Tony didn’t mind because he was with Steve, and that was all that mattered.

Dad was pissed at Steve, but Tony, along with Mom and Jarvis, were able to stop him from doing anything too rash. Tony was still in line to take over the company, but for now he had taken a small job at a mechanic shop.

Once they were dating for six months, Steve proposed to Tony.

“You made me a new man, Tony. Before you, I was lost. Depressed. I didn’t have anyone to call family, but now I have your mom, Jarvis, Jim, and Pepper. And you. I’m addicted to your smile and eyes, and I can’t imagine my life without you. Will you marry me, Tony?”  
  
Tony had cried even as he said “Yes.”

It was true he thought later, in Steve’s arms.

Tony had become a new version of himself with Steve, too.

 

**Author's Note:**

> i dont like the ending its too abrupt. i just didnt know how else to end it hsjdnjasd i tried


End file.
